U.S. Pat. No. 6,300,652B, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, describes a “vertical capacitor” structure. The capacitor includes a layer of dielectric material, typically a ferroelectric material such as PZT (PbZrxTi1−xO3), deposited over barrier layer. It Is there disclosed that the barrier layer may be TiO2, Ta2O3, Si3N4 or ZrO2, but in other documents it is known for this layer to be Al2O3. The ferroelectric material is then patterned, opening holes which extend all the way through it and also through the barrier layer. Electrode material (such as aluminium, copper or tungsten) is deposited into the holes, so that adjascent ones of the electrodes, and the ferroelectic material between then constitute ferrocapacitors. The lower ends of the electrodes extend through the barrier layer, e.g. to further components in lower levels of the structure.
In such a structure it is of particular importance that the layer of ferroelectric material should crystallise, and furthermore that the orientation of the crystallisation should be appropriate. For example, in the case of perovskites such as PZT, a (111)-texture is preferred, i.e. that the 111-crystal direction of the PZT is perpendicular to the Al2O3 layer, so that the growth direction is in the (111)-crystal direction.